What stands out worked out from the figures below

Putnam has the most affordable homes ($269k median).

Wallingford has the highest household income ($105k).

What matters to you?

Pick a few. We’ll pull those rows to the top and mark which town comes out ahead on each. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

Raising kidsAffordabilityOwning a homeShort commuteWorking from homeYounger crowdSettled, older crowdGrowing town

Measure	Putnam	Wallingford
People
Population	9,292Lowest	44,362Highest
Median age	43.7±3Highest 6% above CT	42.6±1.8Lowest 4% above CT
	Putnam and Wallingford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	18.6%±3.6Lowest CT: 20.2%	18.8%±1.9Highest CT: 20.2%
	Wallingford and Putnam are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	18.5%±3.1Lowest CT: 18.5%	21.2%±1.7Highest CT: 18.5%
	Wallingford and Putnam are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	20%Lowest CT: 42.5%	40.4%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	3.9%±1.4Lowest CT: 7.1%	6%±1Highest CT: 7.1%
	Wallingford and Putnam are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$70,561±$7kLowest 26% below CT	$104,773±$5kHighest 9% above CT
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$269,200±$11kLowest 27% below CT	$353,100±$8kHighest 4% below CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,149±$44Lowest 23% below CT	$1,374±$84Highest 8% below CT
Property taxmedian, yearly	$3,860Lowest 42% below CT	$5,963Highest 10% below CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	37.7%±11.6Lowest CT: 52.6%	42.9%±8.9Highest CT: 52.6%
	Wallingford and Putnam are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	11.5%Highest CT: 10%	5.4%Lowest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	59.8%Lowest CT: 66.5%	72.8%Highest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1961Lowest 6 yrs older than CT	1972Highest 5 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	25 minHighest 6% below CT	24 minLowest 8% below CT
Work from home	9%±2.8Lowest CT: 16%	13.3%±2Highest CT: 16%
	Wallingford and Putnam are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#128 of 149 in CT	#108 of 149 in CT
School district	Putnam School District	Wallingford School District
High school in town	Putnam High School	Lyman Hall High School
Students per teacherat that high school	9.5Lowest	10.5Highest
On TownTapestry
Old photos in History	None yet	None yet

CT average · Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates 2020–2024; 2010 & 2020 decennial census; NCES Common Core of Data. “±” is the Census margin of error. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. School rank compares math and reading proficiency against the state average.